


What's in a Name?

by ManiasNotebook



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Akechi Goro Needs a Hug, Comfort, Cuddling & Snuggling, Established Relationship, F/M, Female Reader, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-09
Updated: 2021-03-09
Packaged: 2021-03-16 05:40:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,175
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29945301
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ManiasNotebook/pseuds/ManiasNotebook
Summary: She had always loved his name.
Relationships: Akechi Goro/Reader
Comments: 6
Kudos: 29





	What's in a Name?

_It was a habit to knock. He had always insisted that she could enter whenever she wanted- that he was never too busy for her but (Y/N) could never be too sure. It would feel wrong not to knock. The golden nameplate that displayed his full name on the door with such regality told her, it was wrong to not know._

She had also loved his name. Especially his last name. She couldn’t start disrespecting it now. 

And so, she knocked. Knowing full well that from his muffled voice coming from the other side of the door, there would be no verbal response. He was on another call. The fourth one in two hours, she noted. Though she couldn’t seem to tell where and with whom he was speaking to. But from the sharp rise and fall of his voice, she had a feeling it wasn’t a very pleasant call. Instead of barging in, she counted, _1…2…3…4…and 5_. When there was no sign of a response, she took one hand off of the warm mug and softly pushed at the large mahogany door. 

The door opened slowly, lightly brushing against a decorative rug placed directly in front of it. With the door just barely opened, she peaked her head through the crack, hoping to catch a glance of the detective. His back was facing her as he stood looking out the large window behind his desk. Even from the doorway, she could see how tense his shoulders were. His fist was closed around his work phone, nestled tight within his gloved right hand. Trailing her eyes along his left arm she spotted his hand gripping the desk behind him in a show of quiet anger. He was speaking Japanese, his voice low and dangerous. A bad sign for whoever was on the receiving end.

Silently, she pushed the door open enough for her to slip inside before fixing her grip on the mug. He hadn’t seemed to hear her yet so she took her time approaching. With careful steps, she made her way closer to him, his favorite coffee mug with his favorite blend, enclosed safely within her hands. 

Due to the small size of his home office, she made it to him in a matter of seconds. Seeing as he was still distracted with his call, her eyes scanned his desk for a few seconds before spotting exactly what she was searching for. Taking one hand off of the mug, she quietly dragged a coaster hidden from underneath an ungodly large pile of scattered documents. Once the coaster was in an open spot and out of the way of any of the papers messily spread across his desk, she gently placed the mug on top.

The quiet thump of the mug making contact with the coaster was enough to get his attention. From her peripheral, she watched as he froze momentarily, before whipping around to face her. She instantly drew back, obviously surprised at getting caught within his intense gaze. She offered a small apologetic smile, nervously meeting his reddish-brown eyes.

Face set in a straight line, Goro chose to study her instead of offering an immediate response. She shuffled on her feet, hands clasped together as she endured being under his watchful detective’s eyes for a few agonizing seconds. 

And without a word, he had lifted his left hand that had fallen limp at his side and drew out to his side. (Y/N) frowned, confusion evident on her face as her eyebrows furrowed. Even the little voice on the other side of his phone was confused, at the odd change in behavior. She could faintly make out a thick Japanese accent calling Goro’s name over and over again. 

“Um…” She started, unsure of what he wanted. He sighed through his nose quietly, eyes narrowing tiredly. He brought his right shoulder up to where he’s holding the phone against his ear. With an almost practiced elegance, he replaces his hand with his shoulder, trapping the phone against his ear once more. With both his hands free, he held his arms to the side. His elbows were slightly bent due to him standing so close to the wall and the window. Still, his pose pulled at the material of a crisp, blood-red, button up that (Y/N) just adored on his figure. But she knew that wasn’t what she was supposed to be focusing on.

Not with the yet simple, straightforward motion he had just made with his hands. 

A curl of the fingers. Once. Twice.

_Come here._

So she did. And when she was close enough to his awaiting figure, he took the initiative and pulled her flush against his chest. A small grunt of surprise left her mouth as she stumbled into his embrace. Goro let out another sigh as his arms encircled her waist and rested along her back. She couldn’t help but let out a sigh herself as his warmth spread through her body and protected her from the chilly apartment. She leaned her head against him, pressing her ear against his chest just so she could hear his heartbeat. 

She should have known that this is what he wanted all along. His upbringing had forced him to be ruthless in order to get what he wanted while the lack of love he received as a child had only made him crave it more and more. With that thought, her hands fisted the material of his shirt in an effort to feel closer to him. To let him know that she was there, whenever he needed her. If he had understood her silent message, he didn’t show it. Not that she was expecting him to pick up on such a discreet sign, anyways. Instead, he let out a slight hum that vibrated his chest, reached down, and kissed her forehead before beginning to speak again.

“Gomen'nasai”. _Sorry_ , he had said into the phone finally, followed by what she could only assume to be an excuse for his sudden “disappearance”. It was the only word in that sentence that she could confidently say she knew. Everything else felt like a blur to her, a clear indication that this conversation wasn’t for her. Vaguely remembered words and phrases popped up here or there but it was nothing Goro had really gone over with her lately. Still, with nothing better to do at that moment, she decided to eavesdrop as best as she could purely for her own enjoyment. If this were a conversation in English, she knew she would have been kicked in a heartbeat, “for her own safety.” But right now, she just wanted to be close.

His voice had lost the serious edge it had earlier. Instead, it had regained some of its usual silvery charm. Light and professional, with a low hum every now and then when he was thinking of what to say next. The voice over the phone had turned jovial as well. The only hint of the conversation’s previous mood was the nervous laugh that she could just barely make out whenever Goro’s associate was about to say something. But it was pleasant listening to him speak. He had always sounded so smart and confident and in control of everything. Being so close to him while he was on a work call brought an odd sense of comfort to her.

But she all too soon grew bored with just listening. With her head turned against his chest, she took the chance to peer out of the window. She was hoping for a small distraction. It was then when she fully noticed the world outside of their high-rise apartment. _When had the sky turned gray?_ Her eyes focused on the dark clouds blanketing the heavens like a jacket. There were small splashes of water on the window, speckling here and there. Too light and too few to be raindrops, so it must have sprinkled earlier. The thought of the rain made her let out an involuntary shiver as she recalled the many times a sudden downpour had left her soaking wet and freezing cold. Goro responded instantly, giving her a tight squeeze and rhythmically shifting his weight so that the two of them were rocking within each other’s arms. 

(Y/N) felt her eyes slip close, a wave of peace falling over her as she snuggled further into his embrace. She could feel his chest rise with every inhale and fall with every exhale. The ambiance of the situation was all too relaxing, and she felt herself dozing off slightly. His presence was too soothing not to. There was almost nothing to break the silent comfort of his office. Even his quiet voice speaking into his phone with an even, steady tone added to the atmosphere. 

She honestly would have fallen asleep in his arms if it weren’t for his sudden shift in position. Releasing her waist with one hand, he reached up to grab the phone tucked between his shoulder and ear. Startled out of her daze, she snapped her head up to watch him as he seemingly said his goodbyes to the other caller, his fingers hovering over the end call button. 

“Otsukaresama deshita, Akechi Goro!” T _hank you for your hard work, Goro Akechi._ Then a click sounded from the phone. 

The call was over.

The two of them sat in silence for a few seconds. Goro had turned his head to look out the window. (Y/N) was still peering up at him with curious eyes. Distractedly, Goro had begun to rub small circles into her waist as he let out a tired sigh through his nose. He closed his eyes, inhaling deeply before opening his eyes and letting out another deep exhale. With the slight move of his head, he turned his gaze onto her, reddish-brown orbs meeting (e/c). 

“Good morning, my dear.” He murmured. There were bags underneath his eyes. How had she not noticed before? Her mind drifted over to the stack of documents that were still on his desk. They were all for him, weren’t they? Now that she thought about it, it seemed like so much work. Too much for one person, especially one as young as Goro. The tired sighs, the agitation, they were all signs of his fatigue. It hurt to see him this way but with a field as complicated as his, there wasn’t much (Y/N) could do. She wasn’t trained in law or deductive reasoning. She didn’t know what type of paperwork he needed to fill out and why. In an effort to curve the feeling of defeat, her brain supplied her the one thing she could do, but the idea sat heavy on her tongue with embarrassment. 

“Dearest,” Goro had called out, his voice breaking her from her thoughts …is something wrong?” His eyes had narrowed in concern as a small frown overtook his face. He had stopped rubbing circles into her waist and had slipped his work phone into the pocket of his dress pants. Moving both his hands to her hips, he squeezed in a quiet reassurance, trying to prompt her to speak. Shallowly her pride thickly, she mentally prepared herself for what she was about to do. 

“Um… Otsu…O-otsukaresama d-deshita, Akechi Goro!” She parroted the words she had heard from the phone call earlier with sloppy Japanese and a soft smile. The whole line felt cheesy and almost unnecessary but if she couldn’t help him physically, the least she could do was show her support, right? Besides, it was somewhat of an excuse to say his full name again. Not that she would ever tell him that, of course.

Following her poor attempt at his native language, Goro froze. His mouth parted in slight surprise, clearing not expecting it. Affection could be a fickle thing. A lesson he learned as an orphan. A lesson that was hardened by being a celebrity. And people would use his name for everything. For fame, for glory. For money, or power, or greed, or hatred. Never love. Never truly love.

But the way she says his name is always the same, he realized. Full of adoration and respect. Praise that always seemed to break him down in the smallest of ways. This time, it was enough for him to recover from his initial shock. 

He responded to her with a smile of his own. His once concerned eyes holding an abundance of warmth and love and pure adoration. Slowly, he took one hand off of her waist before bringing it up to capture one of her own hands that were still clutching to his shirt. With a deep sigh, he closed his eyes and brought it to his mouth. He kissed the back of her hand gently.

“Thank you,” He muttered, delivering a long, delicate kiss to the knuckle of her ring finger. “Thank you.” 

Quiet. Relieved. Emotional. Her smile grew.

She had always loved his name. He had always wanted to give it to her. 


End file.
